Sixteen Mile Sports Complex | Officially opened ... - Oakville

To enhance ournatural environmentKey accomplishments• In October, the Town of Oakville received news that it hadworked nearly two years to hear when the province announcedthe cancellation of the proposed TransCanada power plant inOakville. Town Council, staff and residents worked tirelesslytogether to prove to the province that this power plant did notbelong in the overtaxed Oakville-Clarkson airshed.• In February 2010, Council passed the Health ProtectionAir Quality By-law 2010-035, the first municipal by-law inCanada that would help protect residents from the negativehealth effects of fine particulate matter.• The town’s efforts to improve air quality in the Oakville-Clarkson Airshed received a big boost in November when, asa result of the town’s Environmental Bill of Rights application,the Ministry of the Environment announced it would beundertaking a review of how it manages emissions of fineparticulate matter, specifically PM 2.5. The province anticipatesthat a thorough review will take approximately 15 to 18 months.• Council approved planning policies and regulations thatset new standards for assessing the appropriate size, type,scale and location of proposed power generation facilitiesthroughout the town.• As part of the Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) 2010 ManagementPlan approved by Council in July, the town treated 1,600municipal trees with TreeAzin to protect against theinfestation of EAB. The town also ceased planting newash trees, enhanced communication to the public andimplemented canopy conservation by under planting newspecies of trees in areas dominated by ash trees.• The town, in conjunction with the Canadian Forest Service,performed leading-edge EAB research to inventoryOakville’s ash trees becoming the first municipality inCanada to comprehensively define distribution of EABthroughout a community.• The town implemented Milestone 3 – the town’s actionplan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions for the Partners forClimate Protection program. The town reduced 1,247 tonsof carbon dioxide equivalent and is on track to achieve itsestablished corporate target of 20 per cent by 2014.• The town is nearing completion on the environmentalassessment and design work for 14 Mile Creek Channel.The results of the design will stabilize and rehabilitate thebed and banks while preventing future flooding and erosion.• The town completed a draft Urban Forest StrategicManagement Plan for North Oakville to ensure the naturallandscape of North Oakville is maintained and enhanced.• Upon being called to address a serious fuel leak into BronteCreek, Roads and Works Operations staff coordinated theeffort to initially control the spill area; ensure the pipelinerepair and spill cleanup were managed; and that appropriateagency oversight by the Ministry of the Environment andConservation Halton was provided.• The town celebrated the 40th anniversary of Earth Day onApril 22 at Town Hall. The event offered a workshop oncooking local food and hands-on demonstrations of energyefficienttechnology and green gardening.Town of Oakville 2010 Annual Report | 6